The Plateau State Governor, Simon Lalong, on Wednesday lamented on the violation of COVID-19 protocols by people of the state.
The governor spoke during a meeting with members of the state task force on COVID-19 and other stakeholders held at the Government House in Jos, the state capital.
He directed commissioners and other senior government officials in the state to engage the people on the matter.
The governor also cautioned the people against spreading unsubstantiated rumours about the COVID-19 pandemic.
Lalong said: “Mostly we hear of the big names but do not get to hear of the others involving people that are less prominent. This should give us serious concern because it means that the situation is bigger than what we seem to know.
“The most worrisome point here is that despite this situation, most citizens appear to be careless and reluctant to observe the COVID-19 protocols. In fact, many have abandoned and refused to observe simple protocols of wearing face masks, maintaining social distance, and washing hands regularly.
“This worries me a lot because this recklessness is further exposing more people to the virus and then increasing the casualty figures. While we have no intention of imposing another lockdown to avoid further damage to the economy, some members of the public are not helping us.
“On the issue of vaccine, I have already heard some people peddling conspiracy theories. I want to say that I will be the first to take the vaccine whenever it is available in Plateau State.”
Plateau State has the third-highest COVID-19 burden in Nigeria with 5,962 confirmed cases and 46 fatalities, according to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC).
